Bangladesh Feminist Archives (BDFA) stands in solidarity with Aborodhabasini, the platform of women students at Dhaka University, and their ongoing campaign against gender-based discrimination in the university’s residential hall system.
The demands raised by Aborodhabasini are not simply about extending hall entry hours. They challenge an institutional structure that continues to restrict women’s movement, access to university facilities, and autonomy under the guise of “security.” As the platform argues, restricting women’s mobility instead of ensuring their safety reflects an administrative failure, not a commitment to protection.
The experiences documented by Aborodhabasini reveal how these policies shape students’ everyday lives. Women have reported being locked out of halls after returning from hospitals or long-distance travel, facing humiliating questioning and arbitrary treatment while entering through late gates, and being denied access to halls and even dining facilities despite being enrolled students. The platform has also highlighted that nearly 57 percent of women students at Dhaka University lack residential accommodation, leaving many disproportionately affected by these restrictions.
We commend Aborodhabasini for documenting these lived experiences, organizing across campus, collecting hundreds of student signatures, and building a collective movement against discriminatory regulations that have long been normalized.
BDFA supports Aborodhabasini’s three demands: the repeal of the discriminatory 10:00 pm–6:00 am hall curfew and the guarantee of 24-hour freedom of movement and safety; equal hall access for resident and non-resident students, including the right to stay overnight with appropriate permission; and access to halls for women family members, including mothers and sisters.
We call on the Dhaka University administration to engage seriously with Aborodhabasini’s memorandum and to replace discriminatory restrictions with policies that uphold equality, dignity, and students’ rights.